We are returning to action on the 10th of January, with many a fine scribble to welcome in the new year. Made a a resolution to write more this year? Join us! We offer much friendly encouragement as ever.

Also: Thursday the 24th will be our much anticipated Short Story 2018 Awards evening. Some of you know the winners already, but it will be made official then.

Hello! The last two meetings of 2018 are going to be excellent. They are open to all comers, being Guest Speaker Ian Hall on the 13th Dec , then our annual mince pie fest and joyful Christmas Readings on the 20th Dec. Bring along anyone you like to come and enjoy the fun 🙂
We come back then on the 10th January, ready for all those New Year resolutions.

Carys Bray’s debut collection Sweet Home won the Scott prize and selected stories were broadcast on BBC Radio Four Extra. Her first novel A Song for Issy Bradley was serialised on BBC Radio Four’s Book at Bedtime and was shortlisted for the Costa Book Awards, the Association of Mormon Letters Awards, the Waverton Good Read Award, the 15 Bytes Book Awards and the Desmond Elliott Prize. The novel won the Utah Book Award and the Authors’ Club Best First Novel Award. It was was selected for the 2015 Richard and Judy Summer Book Club. Her second novel The Museum of You was published in June 2016.

Full Rules:

Your entry should be an unpublished, original story on any theme of up to 2000 words (previous publication includes via internet or independent press).

Do not put your name or any other identifying information on your story but do give it a suitable title. Titles should be both appropriate and interesting.

There is no set theme or style for the competition, other than the above.

You do not need an entry form. Send us a separate cover sheet with each entry’s title, word count, your name, address, telephone number and e-mail address.

For internet entries, put above details in body of email but also please include PayPal ref. number OR put the story(ies) names in the comments box when paying. Also please use basic formatting in any of .doc, .docx, rich text or .odf file types when attaching your entry file to the email. Any sidebars, headers, footers or unusual layouts may result in your electronic entry being rejected.

No individual correspondence will be entered into regarding receipt of works/payments. Please do not send any confirmational material or use Recorded Delivery.

Please include an SAE if you wish to receive a print of the results/judges report (if available) when the competition is finished. For email entries, please note in the body of the mail that you would like to receive the results.

Winners will be informed in Dec/Jan, general availability of results will be available on this site thereafter. There may be a delay publishing results depending on circumstances and permissions.

Entries in English please (minor dialect allowable).

Winning stories may be published on this site for 12 months with permission of original author.

Optional – Paper saving single-spaced entries encouraged.

The fee is £3.00 for each story, or £10 for 4. You can pay by cheque or postal order made out to Southport Writers’ Circle. (E-entries have a processing fee.)

Send postal entries to:

Short Story Competition

60 Dinorwic Rd,

Southport,

Merseyside, PR8 4DL

We are getting terribly emotional at SWC, with an evening dedicated to expressing our feelings in a variety of different work. There will be a talk from Dennis Conlon, writing activities and discussions about the best way to show the reader how you feel.

Another year, another set of difficult decisions. In the role of Chief Judge we were graced by the talented and prolific Alison Chisholm, whose opinion is very much respected in the world of poetry (and is also an ex-member of SWC!). The International part of the competition did not fail to surprise us again, with entries from France, Germany, and South Africa. The shortlisting was a hard process with so many excellent entries, but somehow we got it down to the final filter of twenty or so. The downside of an anonymous system also struck, as the 1st Prize winner also turned out to be the Humour Prize winner. I’m sure you will agree though, that both poems are worth of taking the prizes, as well as the 2nd 3rd and Commendeds. For those who did not make the final cut, we hope to see your work again next year, as in such a tight competition, anyone could swing it next time!

Judges Report from Alison Chisholm –

My big problem was with the humour section. The hilarious pieces were badly crafted. The beautifully crafted pieces weren’t funny. I’ve ended up picking a poem that has some wry touches of humour among pretty dark layers, and is without doubt the best contender for a humour prize. The results, then, are:

Humour

Your Call is Important to Us

by David Mark Williams

The repetition and delicious images work well, and while there is clear humour in the recognisable frustration of the repeated announcement, there are neat undercurrents to show this is not just a poem about an annoying phone call, but has a much deeper significance.

First Prize

Insomnia Soliloquy

By David Mark Williams

Anyone who has ever spent a sleepless night will identify with this poem. It uses imagery with precision, and it’s an object lesson in how to craft a free verse poem in which slant rhyme and lineation are applied beautifully.

Second Prize

The Curse

By Elizabeth Horrocks

Another free verse poem, this takes an original subject and clothes it in finely crafted free verse. The route from innocence to Mammon is charted perfectly.

Third Prize

Allowing the Light

By Sheila Aldous

This piece, written in response to a recent tragedy, can hardly fail to touch everyone who followed the story.

Highly Commended

Cold Egg

By Jenny West

This brilliant evocation of family life is image-rich and enormously appealing. The only thing wrong with the poem is its lack of punctuation, which is such an important factor in the poem.

On the 21st of June we are welcoming noted poet, Alison Chisholm to dispense her literary wisdom on our Annual Poetry Competition 2018 adjudication evening, where we will find out the winners and listen to some prize-winning poetry. All welcome.

On Thursday the 14th we are heading down to Reuters for a fun-filled evening of doggies and extremely good raffle prizes instead of our regular meeting. Please do not turn up at Parenting 2000 on that night as we will not be there! See the link below for more details and we hope you can join us with all your family and friends 🙂

On the 26th we are having a session of thought and craft as our speakers Dennis Conlon and Sean Heslin lead us through talks and activities, as we explore the concepts of Developing Character Voice and Developing Authorial Voice.

It is a free event, though donations are encouraged. Any level of writing ability is welcome and we invite anyone who has an interest to come along and enjoy an evening of expanding writing concepts in unexpected directions.